Signature View Apartments: From dream homes to unsafe ruins

While streets in Mukherjee Nagar wear a dreary look, gloom has set upon Signature View Apartments as the families have started vacating their flats after the apartment was declared unsafe.

Built in 2007 by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on 2.16 acres of land in Mukherjee Nagar, Signature View consists of 12 towers and 336 flats for high-income group and middle-income group buyers. Residents who invested their life savings were initially drawn by modern amenities and the prestige of a DDA project.

Cracks began to appear within a few years. While minor repairs were carried out by the DDA in 2015, rust was discovered in the steel reinforcements. The plaster fell off from the walls and water seepage became harrowing for the residents.

Reports from the National Council for Building Materials and other agencies pointed to poor construction practices, but interventions remained superficial.

While talking to The Tribune, Amarendra Rakesh, president of the Residents Welfare Association, said: “The roofs and plaster began falling inside homes by 2018 to 2019”. “Studies, including one from Ram Research Institute, confirmed that poor cement-water ratios and untreated water caused structural damage. Yet, DDA failed to act,” he said.

In November 2022, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi’s structural audit officially declared the buildings unsafe, citing corroded reinforcements and weakened columns, beams and slabs. Shriram Institute of Industrial Research also concluded its report with similar findings. Following this, the Delhi High Court on September 17 ordered evacuation, setting October 12, 2025 as the final deadline with no stay on demolition.

The court directed the DDA to pay rent retrospectively at Rs 50,000 per month for a three-bedroom flat with a 10 per cent annual increase. Several residents argue this is below market rates. “I retired from government service and invested my lifetime savings here. The DDA pays us Rs 50,000, but the rent of similar flats ranges from Rs 80,000 to Rs 90,000. I will have to pay the difference from my own pocket,” said Ashok Yatin, relocating to DLF Motinagar.

Some families vacated the apartment after receiving the DDA support. “We lived in danger till August,” said Satish Chaudhary, a resident since 2012. “Once we got two installments of August and September, we finally moved out,” he said.

Legal proceedings have also begun. In May 2025, the CBI filed cases against 32 officials and others, including DDA engineers and contractors, for negligence and endangering lives.

According to the FIR, “It is alleged, as per the aforesaid letter of complaint, that the accused public servants of the DDA in conspiracy with the directors of the companies, as per the list enclosed, bypassed the quality control as highlighted in the contract and the CPWD manual and compromised the quality and structural safety requirement during the construction. Due to sub-standard construction and inferior quality of materials, the building was declared unsafe for living within less than a decade of its erection, thereby causing loss of Rs 45 crore (approx) to the DDA and wrongful gain to themselves.”

“Therefore, a regular case has been registered against the aforesaid persons under Sections 120-B and 420 of the IPC and Sections 13(2) r/w 13(1) (d) of the PC Act, 1988, and entrusted to Yasir Arafat, Deputy SP, CBI, ACB, New Delhi, for investigation,” the FIR added.

Meanwhile, the DDA has invited demolition bids and promised reconstruction, though timelines remain uncertain.

Residents recount years of warning signs. “Rust in steel bars was visible as early as 2015,” Rakesh stated.

Gaurav Pandey, secretary of the Residents’ Welfare Association, pointed out that multiple reports cautioned the DDA, but poor implementation worsened the damage. “By 2018 to 2019, ceilings and plaster were falling inside homes. The IIT-Delhi report of November 2022 clearly declared Signature View structurally unsafe. Safety must come first, and by October 12, most families will vacate,” he said.

For hundreds of families, the upheaval is not just structural but deeply personal. Children are compelled to change schools, elderly residents are leaving familiar surroundings and long-standing communities are being uprooted.

Once hailed as a model DDA project, Signature View now stands condemned less than 15 years after possession. While demolition may clear unsafe towers, rebuilding trust will take far longer. The story of Signature View is a stark reminder of how negligence, poor oversight and delayed action can turn dream homes into ruins, leaving residents caught between unsafe walls and uncertain futures.

Multiple calls to officials of the DDA did not elicit any response.